Mr Sibusiso Gcabashe, facing a charge of impersonating a Maskandi singer who was already dead, will spend Christmas in jail as his case was yesterday postponed to next year.

Gcabashe faces a flood of charges and is currently being tried in a case relating to his impersonation of Maskandi singer Kwakhe “Mgqumeni” Khumalo, who died in 2009. In court all sides were in agreement that the case be postponed because his lawyer had not reported to the court – not even about where he is.

Botha surprised many when he said that he requests that Gcabashe’s blood be taken, as well as Mgqumeni’s children’s blood, so that genetic testing can be carried out.

The court disputed this and it ended up that he walked out in the middle of the trial and went away, and the trial ended up being postponed.

In the previous court appearance in which Gcabashe came forth again, Botha was again apparent in the courtroom because the Khumalo family had begged him to continue representing them.

The previous time the case was postponed, last month, Prosecutor Irene Neyt, who was present, put to the court the fact that she was no longer going to be a part of the case.

“I would ask the court that this case continue well in the coming year, but the new lawyer and prosecutor must meet so that they may come to an agreement about the date,” said Neyt.

Bhova’s family (the Khumalo family) told Isolezwe previously that the withdrawal of the lawyer in a vacillatory manner was part of their plan to get a chance to arrange the results of the genetic testing, which will show that Gcabashe is really Mgqumeni.

It looks to be a long wait for any resolution for the followers of iBhova likaDikadika, in terms of when a decision will be made in the case facing Sibusiso Gcabashe, as the release of the hearing date has not resolved anything about when the matter will come to court.

Khumalo’s family, here where Gcabashe appeared to them in Nquthu, are starting to show their anger at the fact that the case is taking so long, and that it hasn’t even begun to be heard yet.

Previously Isolezwe reported that Mr Dalingcebo Khumale said that they are now tired with the fact that this case is being drawn out for such a long time “as clearly it is a case which is unlawful and which must not be heard, but because of people wanting to trample on their child’s name there is this man who’s been arrested”.

Gcabashe, who is already facing a string of cases including one of rape arising in Xobho, surprised many people when he said that he was Kwakhe “Mgqumeni” Khumalo, who died in 2009.

The case which will begin today in the district court in Vryheid has been delayed in its hearing as a result of many factors such as evidence which had not been compiled.

In the words of Gcabashe’s lawyer, Mr Johan Botha, it was delayed so that documents from other courts, relating to the other charges facing Gcabashe, can be brought to court today.

“Today the documents from other courts will be presented, containing charges, as it is apparently better that these charges be heard in one court rather than having him transported to many places, and so that the verdict when given will be for one sentence from one court,” said Botha.

He said that even though the case has now been drawn out for a long time, he is hopeful that once evidence is presented the case will not be heard for a long time because people have long been waiting for the court’s verdict.

In the previous court appearance Gcabashe again disgusted other members of Mgqumeni’s family by entering court wearing extensions in his hair just like Bhova had, as though he hadn’t died.

Well, the first problem is one of spelling – is it Tokoloshe, Tikoloshe, Tokolo or Tokolosh? All of these are accepted, and (for the most part) the name is usually capitalised. It is unusual, except in cases like the Zombie Maskandi, for the plural to be used – this implies that the word was initially a name, a Mephisto or Hermes or Loki, rather than a description like ‘demon’ or ‘imp’.

Linguistically, the root of the word is not apparent – for one, what is interesting is the use of the hard ‘T’, which is fairly unusual in isiZulu. Other than the literal translations offered for the words used above, among which is…

“a fabulous water-sprite or kelpy, supposed to haunt certain rivers, to be very fond of women, to be mischievous to people, and to be used by witches for nefarious purposes, and said to resemble a tiny, hairy dwarf”

(Vilakazi and Doke, s.v.)

… the only related words with the same root are ‘isitokolo’, which is inexplicably a kind of Tsetse fly trap, and ‘utokolo’, which is a contracted form of the full name. There are no verbs with this root, nor any other nouns. Expanding the search to include variant spellings such as ‘thokola’ or ‘thokoloshe’ reveals nothing at all.

So the linguistics don’t help us – but we certainly have enough evidence from other areas, and particularly from people who claim to have seen or known the Tokoloshe. Berglund (1976, page 280) points out a number of interesting things about the ‘Tikoloshe’ – that he was traditionally harmless and mischievous, and “becomes harmful when he is caught by a witch”, and the he “is the most sought after of all the familiars because he can really satisfy (sexually) the hunger of the witches”. The sexual prowess of the Tokoloshe is well noted – Berglund’s informants stated that he “has an exceedingly large male member which, due to its size, has to be carried over the shoulders and around the neck”. In appearance he is “hairy like a pig”, is very short and has a split tongue – of interest here is that he cannot speak before a witch catches him and turns him into a familiar, and she is the one who splits his tongue so that he can speak the language that they understand.

There are many stories about the Tokoloshe, but one in particular adds another interesting dimension to the composite picture of this creature – on uKhozi FM, an isiZulu radio station broadcast from Durban, there was an interview one morning with a man who claimed to have the recipe for ‘seeing’ a Tokoloshe. The recipe ran thus:

First, you must remove the ubuthongo (the sleep) from a dog’s eye, first thing in the morning.

You must then put this sleep in your eye – dogs can see Tokoloshe, and so you must take their power into your own eyes before you can also see him.

Then, it is very importance that you stay far away from the hearth – the Tokoloshe is terribly afraid of fire, and the smell of smoke on your clothes will chase him away immediately.

You will see him in the lonely places, near water.

Seeing Tokoloshe is only the first step, however – there are many imithi which need to be used to strengthen yourself against his magic, and to trap him, and then to keep him.

So, how do these things fit together? What possible explanation can there be?

If you look at the different characteristics of the Tokoloshe, there are broadly two divergent aspects – his hyper-sexuality, and his fear of civilization.

The hyper-sexuality is a common feature of nocturnal demons such as succubi, as well as trickster or magical mythological figures such as Loki and Hermes. It may, in the South African context, be very tempting to trace the stories of Tokoloshe’s sexuality to more real predators, especially in light of one detail – the modern tendency to associate the Tokoloshe with the ‘bricks under the bed’. In modern South African homes, many people still raise their beds using bricks, or empty paint tins, in order to avoid the Tokoloshe’s advances. To anyone aware of the current issues around child abuse and rape in South Africa, these details speak of a fear of being sexually assaulted, as well as the fear of the real person committing the assault – by saying that ‘the Tokoloshe raped me last night’, you are avoiding saying that ‘my uncle raped me’.

However, in light of the fact that the Tokoloshe’s hypersexuality is found in other mythological and folklore figures around the world and across time, it’s probably better if we move away from the immediate context of South Africa and consider the facts a bit more objectively. Folklore figures noted for their prominent sexuality are often associated with fertility, and are equally as often associated with apotropaic (defending against evil) qualities, e.g. Hermes, and his ithyphallic statues used as street signs in ancient Athens. However, the ones who sneak into bedrooms at night, such as the succubi, are usually part of a more complex category of bogeymen – stories told to children to scare them into doing (or not doing, as the case may be) something or other. So the Tokoloshe is probably part fertility figure and part bogeyman.

But the issue of his fear of civilization is an intriguing one – according to many different sources, he only appears in wild places, near water, and at night. This may be an added feature of his bogeyman status, but there are also elements of Pan-type deities in this description. Of interest too is his fear of the smell of smoke from hearth-fires. I haven’t quite wrapped my head around this, but I have a few as-yet-unproven theories about it.

So… what’s the deal with Gcabashe and his oTokoloshe in the courtroom? The simplest explanation would be to say that he is schizophrenic, and hearing the Tokoloshe speaking to him is just his way of explaining the voices in his head. But there is also the possibility that he was indeed bewitched in some way, and that the Tokoloshe is actually real. Maybe he found a dog, first thing in the morning?

Headline on front page: Twists and turns as the Bhova impersonator raves and kicks about his surname

The matter of the case of Sibusisio Gcabashe, who made himself famous by claiming that he was the deceased Maskandi singer Kwakhe “Mgqumeni” Khumalo, is now just like a fairy story.

Yesterday when he appeared in the district court in Vryheid he offered a lot of testimony, but especially that he is now saying that people must stop calling him Gcabashe because this is not his surname.

Gcabashe again confused many people, and left them with many questions, when he said that he now wants people to call him Khumalo, not this ‘Gcabashe’ which he has agreed to be since he was arrested.

“I ask that people respect me and know that I am Mgqumeni, not this Gcabashe which they call me. I am Kwakhe Khumalo, and I ask that this be respected and that I not be called by the name of someone whom I don’t know,” said Gcabashe.

The presiding Magistrate, Mr Sifiso Madida, stopped him there and informed him that everything that he wanted to speak about will be discussed on the day that the case is heard next month.

Yesterday it was expected that the first day for hearing the case would be set, but because the investigator was on leave this did not take place.

It was suggested that the hearing of the case will begin on the 6th of July in the Vryheid court. Another thing which emerged was that the witnesses who would be needed when the case is heard must meet with the investigator, so that they may know when they will be needed in the court. This happened because Gcabashe apparently has received threats from certain people, because when he saw his mother and brother in the Magistrate’s court in Nquthu he told them who had sent him to call himself Mgqumeni.

When he saw them, Gcabashe told them that Nonhlanhla Majola, who was the girlfriend of the singer, took him and sent him to the Khumalo homestead, eSigqumeni in Nquthu, and that he arrived and was beaten there, and told that he must agree fully that he is Mgqumeni and that he rose from the dead.

Sibusiso Gcabashe has finally spoken about his arrival at the Khumalo homestead, when he claimed to be the Maskandi singer Mgqumeni, saying that

everything he did was to be with the daughter of Kwakhe “Mgqumeni” Khumalo, Ms Nonhlanhla Majola.

Gcabashe, who appeared in the Nquthu court yesterday, said that when his brother Mbheki Gcabashe arrived with his mother, Mrs Ntombifikile Gcabashe, he told them that everything was done just because of Ms Majola.

In Mbheki’s words, speaking outside the courtroom, they met with his brother who told them everything, and who said that he had been in a relationship with Ms Majola – who was the one who connected him with the Khumalo family.

He said that when they went to the Khumalo homestead, Ms Majola arrived and spoke plainly, saying that she wanted them to use him by saying that he was ‘iBhova’.

“I am Sibusiso’s younger brother. I came here to the court because I want to see what he would say if we were here as his family. I am happy because, as a result of us being here, he went to one side and was happy to see us, and because he related the story to us about his claiming to be Mgqumeni,” said Bheki.

He said that his brother told them that, during the time he was at the Khumalo homestead, with the adult men were there, it was arranged for him to see an inyanga who treated him, and that they consented readily that in every way he resembled Mgqumeni.

He continued by saying that they, as the Gcabashe family, want to apologise profusely to all those people in whom they had caused any anguish or pain, when his brother was afflicted by this mischievousness in connection with the Khumalo family.

This case was delayed pending a bail application from Gcabashe’s lawyer, Mr Johan Botha, until he also did a complete volte-face, saying that they would no longer be filing an application for bail and that it was better for the case to continue.

The Magistrate, Mr Mpheleli Nkosi, said that he is sending the case to be appealed in the district court in Vryheid from June 18, where a judgement will be given.

S’busiso Gcabashe, who appeared in court in Nquthu yesterday, asked to be released because the other inmates have beaten him and said that he resembles a snake, and because he sees Tokoloshes in jail. Gcabashe entered the courtroom looking like he was afraid that something would happen, only for the Magistrate to tell him that his case could not continue because his lawyer, Mr Johan Botha, was absent.

The Magistrate, Mr Mpheleli Nkosi, postponed the case to June 4th, the day on which fresh applications for bail will be made.

When the case was postponed Gcabashe put up his hand, and the Magistrate ordered him to be placed in the witness box so that they could hear what he wanted to say. When he had entered the witness box he began to ask that he be removed from jail because on Monday he was facing danger in the jail in which he was being held, as the other inmates were beating him with sticks and saying that he was snake.

“I request that I be released because some of the other inmates say that I am not a person but rather a snake when they look at me. They have struck me, and now this matter is upsetting me. It is better that I go home so that an inyanga can treat me because I will end up being injured,” said Gcabashe.

He said that another thing which was upsetting him was that, when he was locked up in jail, he saw Tokoloshes who said that he must speak the truth when he is in court and must not claim to be someone who he isn’t. The magistrate then asked him when he began to see these creatures about which he was talking, and he said that he first saw them in 2009 and was still seeing them even now.

“Even now here in the court I see these creatures – 7 Tokoloshes – and they are saying that I mustn’t say that I am Mgqumeni, and that I must explain who I am, and it is for this reason that I am speaking things which are without any lies. For this reason I ask to be released,” said Gcabashe.

Nkosi began to interrogate him, asking him to explain what language these creatures were speaking, and he said that they speak quickly but he hears them because they are sitting right in front of him.